


Saw You Kicking Dirt In My Eye

by Only_1_Life



Category: Glee, White Collar
Genre: Child Neglect, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-12
Updated: 2018-03-08
Packaged: 2019-02-13 16:07:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 5,280
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12987621
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Only_1_Life/pseuds/Only_1_Life
Summary: When Neal hears that his brother Blaine has ended up in hospital and in need of surgery, he must find a way to get home without Peter finding out too much about a past that he is ashamed of.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first ever fanfic, it will probably be rubbish. This was going to be a little one shot but as I wrote it my brain kept wanting to add things so it has ended up becoming a bigger story. Wont be huge just not the originally planned 1 shot.
> 
> This will be AU as Cooper is not an arrogant actor but is instead Neal, world renowned conman. It is set during Glee Season 3 episode 11 Michael (so Blaine is in hospital due to the Slushie in the face.) and will then also be set during season 2 of White Collar. Although I don't think it hugely matters but it is after season 2x12.
> 
> I have taken a lot of creative license when it comes to Blaine and the slushy, made it more serious that it was in glee but whats a fanfic without a bit of exaggeration.
> 
> This has not been Beta'd and of course these characters do not belong to me.

Neal was just about to fall asleep after a long day at work when Mozzie decides to barge in through his door without knocking. Again.

“Damn it Moz, learn to knock”

“I don’t have time to do such insignificant tasks. Anyway that’s not important right now, Neal you need to get off your leash.”

Neal just stared at Mozzie like he was crazy, they have had this conversation so many times how can Mozzie still be insisiting that Neal leaves. He knows why he can’t, things are good right now, not amazing but not awful. Neal can’t leave until he has found Kates killer and to do that he needs Peter, needs FBI resources.

“Neal, its not what you think I know why you want to stay, _need_ to stay even, but this is for a good reason”

Walking over to the wine rack Neal pours himself and Mozzie a glass, it's not like he is getting to sleep anytime soon. Plus he needs to calm himself down before he listens to Moz' next conspiracy theory. Turning back round Neal rasises an eyebrow while bringing his drink to his lips.

“Really? What good reason would that be?”

“Blaine”

Neal chokes on his drink whatever he thought Moz was going to say it wasn’t that. Begining to panic now but not wanting it to show Neal tries not to think of all the reasons Moz could be mentioning Blaine. They have only ever mentioned him a few times in the past 10 years they have known each other.

“Whats worng with Blaine?  I thought everything was sorted especially since we managed to get him moved to Dalton.” Neal says as he goes over to the table to sit down, hoping whatever Moz’s answer it wont be too serious.

Joining him and taking his glass Moz replies in as calming voice as he can manage. “He is in hospital, just arrived in the last hour I’m not too sure what has happened and the full extent of his injuries of yet but I know its to do with his face and will need surgery.”

They both sit in silence for who knows how long, Neal trying to work through the emotions of finding out his little brother is in hospital for some form of surgery needed to his face. Moz looking at his friend and thinking about how they are going to get Neal to Lima without causing too much trouble for Neal. Once Neal finishes his glass he finaly clears his throat. “Right, well, guess I better call Peter”.

This time it's Moz that has to stop himself from choking. “The suit?! Are you crazy what is the suit going to be able to do about this?”

“Moz don’t be stupid I’ve got to tell Peter how else am I going to get to Lima”

Moz stood up nearly pushing the chair to the gound while doing so. “And what exactly are you going to tell him? If you tell him about Blaine, you tell him about _YOU._ Are you really willing to do that? Let him know the real you?”

“What right so you have to tell me what I can and can’t tell Peter, it’s my life, my story. It’s Blaine, I have to. There is no other choice, besides it's not like I killed someone.”

Walking towards the door Moz turns round to Neal giving him a look of both betrayal and worry. “Fine, tell the suit if you want but don’t blame me when it backfires. I will always be here for you Neal, no matter what, but I don’t think you should tell the suit. You changed your name for a reason” With that Moz walks out the apartment leaving Neal alone to think about how to tell Peter. Maybe Moz is right, maybe peter can't be trusted but Neal can't think of any other way of getting to Lima without becoming a fugitivie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked it so far. Everyone likes a comment, me included. If you notice any mistakes let me know.


	2. Chapter 2

Peter like Neal was glad to be back after a long day at work. So when his phone rings at 2 o’clock in the morning waking him up he wasn’t happy. He was even more unhappy when he saw the name tag.

“Neal it’s two in the morning? What could you possibly want at two in the morning?”

“Peter! Sorry to bother you! Don’t suppose you want to give me a couple days off anklet?”

Rubbing his hand over his face Peter looks to his wife who has thankfully managed to sleep through this phone call so far. Getting out of bed and walking down to the living room Peter thinks of reasons why he should go over to Neal’s right now and lock him up for the next few days instead. 

“Neal you better be either drunk or joking, actually I hope your drunk because if you decided to play a joke on me at two o’clock in the morning I will be beyond angry.”

“Peter I’m well aware of the time no need to keep reminding me, and no im not drunk I could just really use a couple of days off anklet. Somethingof ann emergency has come up and I need to sort it.”

“What sort of an emergency? I don’t think it’s going to be possible to just skip a few days on the anklet its not part of your agreement that you agreed to when you signed. I will look into it in the morning for you and we can discuss your options at work. Now im going to be to sleep like a normal person does at this time. Maybe you should consider it.”

“No! Wait! Please I need to leave as soon as possible this can’t until morning. I promise I am doing nothing illegal and will be back the start of work Monday”

Peter was sitting on the couch now rubbing Satch’s ear while trying not to fall asleep. He really couldn’t be bothered with Neal and his antics right now. Thinking he would be more likely to see a pig flying past his window than it would be to get Neal a few days off anklet. 

“Monday would make it 5 days and ignoring the fact that you are not meant to be doing anything illegal ever you still haven’t given me a valid reason why I should help you.”

There was a minutes silence where peter had to look at his phone to make sure the line hadn’t disconnected.

“Peter. Please.” It was the way Neal sounded as if his life depended on this trip, so dejected that Peter would have tried to see what he could do anyway. This clearly meant a lot to Neal. If Neal saying please wasn’t enough the next line sealed Peters mind. “I wont ask for anything else, not even help with Kate. Please, just a few days.”

“I will pick you up at 7, make sure you have a bag packed. Whatever this is Neal I will be there with you. Just don’t make me regret it.”

………....

“I wont ask for anything else, not even help with Kate.” It was a risk saying that, Neal knew it was a risk but Blaine is in hospital. Neal needed to go see his brother, make sure he was ok. 

“I will pick you up at 7, make sure you have a bag packed. Whatever this is Neal I will be there with you. Just don’t make me regret it”

Neal sighed with relief. When he made the choice to ask Peter he knew the chances were that Peter would join him to Lima. “Thank you, Peter. Thank you” Neal hung up the phone and began packing his bag. In just a few hours he would be on his way to see his brother for this first time in over a decade. 

Still unaware of his Blaines' full condition and what exactly has happened Neal decides to try and get a couple of hours sleep before Peter arrives thinking that the chances are he wont be getting a lot of sleep when he arrives are Lima.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I struggle to work out where to end a chapter which is why I think most of them end up short, or when it comes to this chapter it is super short. Also I have a rough idea of where the next few chapters are going and then that it so we shall just have to see how this goes. 
> 
> This is a pretty rubbish chapter story wise and is mainly filler. Doesn't even need to be read as it doesn't add anything to the story but I also felt like I couldn't just jump to them halfway through the car journey, which should be where the next chapter starts. Hopefully I will get another few chapters up over the next week or so and get the story moving along.
> 
> Again this is not Beta'd.

Neal was standing outside Junes’ waiting for Peter to arrive. It was 7.01 he should be here by now. To say Neal was nervous would be an understatement, not just about going to Lima and being unaware of the full extent of Blaine’s condition but because he knew that he would have to give Peter a reason as to why and where they were going. Mozzie would just tell Neal to lie, but Neal knows he can’t do that. In the time that they have worked together Neal has never lied to Peter and he doesn’t intend to start now. 

Looking at his watch it read 7.02 each minute that was going by seeming like an hour. It was then Neal looks up and sees the Black Ford drive up Riverside Drive that he feel he can take a breath, at least they would be on their way. 

Peter has barley stopped the car by the time Neal has jumped into the passenger seat and buckled his seat belt. The duffel bag being thrown into the back seat of the car. “Right Neal, I’m here and ready to take you wherever you need to go for this emergency of yours. Where to?”

“Lima, Ohio”

“Ohio!? What on earth could be in Ohio that is an emergency? I was expecting us to still be in the same city or at least State.” If Neal wasn’t so stressed about Blaine and nervous about Peter he probably would have found Peters face hilarious, but unfortunately Peters reaction was only adding to Neals stress. 

“Peter! You said you would let me do this, it’s not my fault you didn’t ask where I needed to go earlier on. I did ask for days off anklet.”

Peter turned and stared at Neal for a while, as if he was trying to look into Neals brain and work everything out. Neal squirmed under the scrutiny but was also pleading with his eyes. He just wanted to get going it would be a long journey as it was and delaying it was not helping with the anxiety coursing through his veins. 

“Your right, I’m sorry I didn’t ask you. But I expect answers on the drive there and don’t worry I phoned Hughes before leaving and he has authorised us being off work until the end of this week. You have to stay on the anklet and if we are ever apart for any reason you need to phone and check with me every hour on the hour.”

Neal sighs in relief, he could do that as long as he just got to see Blaine. He thought Peter was going to object driving all the way to Lima and Neal wasn’t sure what he would have done next if that was the case. As hard as the last few months have been in New York he does enjoy his time at White Collar and don’t know how he would have felt about running. 

Humming Neal leans back and closes his eyes while Peter starts driving. He knew Peter was wanting answers but the lack of sleep and stress from the past 24 hours was catching up with him and he felt himself drifting off knowing that in 10 hours he would be seeing Blaine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and Kudos appreciated. Or to be honest at his point Hits also make me happy at this point.
> 
> If you notice any mistakes let me know.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, for the long wait. I had written a couple more chapters and then my laptop for some weird reason deleted the whole work. I then couldn't be bothered writing them again but finally got round to doing this part again today. It is different from what I originally planned to write as a fanfic but I think I am liking it more. It is more me. 
> 
> I am making this completely up as I go along though. I have a rough idea what is going to happen but it keeps changing when I write it. 
> 
> Hopefully you guys like the update. If you see any mistakes let me know. x

  
  
  


Neal wasn't sure how long he had been asleep before the sound of Peter slamming the car door jerked him awake. Rubbing the sleep out of his eyes he looked around and realised that they were at a gas station, presumably getting gas.  
  
Looking to his right he saw Peter rummaging through a plastic bag before throwing a ham and cheese sandwich, a bottle of water and a packet of chips onto his lap. Realising how hungry he was mumbled a grateful thanks in Peters direction before scoffing down the sandwich in record time.  
  
Peter looks at Neal trying to hid a smirk. "You better go to the restroom as well before we head off. I don't plan on stopping again". And of course just like he was hungry Neal realises that he does also need to go to the toilets. Groaning as he gets out the car. He tries to stretch all the kinks in his back that occur when sleeping in an uncomfortable car journey for who knows how long.  
  
Splashing water over his face in the men's room Neal tries to calm himself down and prepare himself for what is, most likely, going to be a very awkward and invasive car journey. Getting his breathing under control, Neal straightens his tie and heads back towards the car.  
  
As predicted, the car journey was very awkward but Neal was thankful that right now it was just awkward silence that filled the air and not with Peter interrogating him about this trip. He knew Peter wanted answers and that eventually he would have to give them but the longer he could hold off the better, at least that what he was thought. This silence really was draining.  
  
  
......................  
  
  
From the corner of his eye Peter could see Neal squirming in the seat. Good. Peter had let him sleep for the first 6 hours of the journey but there was still 4 more to go. Closer to 3 hours left now but still plenty of time and he didn't mind letting Neal sleep for part of it. It let him work through his thoughts of what could possibly be in Lima and then when he had become fed up of that he decided to turn on the radio and listen to some sports commentary.  
  
It's not like Peter wouldn't eventually get the answers and with the way Neal was currently wriggling about in his seat he knew he would be getting them soon. Turning his attention back to the road while listening to the radio. It was probably about another 10 minutes before Neal went to try and change the channel. "No Neal, we are listening to this. I'm the one having to drive 10 hours and I don't even know why. Until you can explain why we are listening to what I want to".  
  
Slouching back in his seat Neal turns his head to look out the window. "You don't have to treat me like a kid. I didn't ask you to drive me here you volunteered."  
  
Trying not to get angry at Neal, Peter continues to look at the road before responding "You know I had to come with you Neal don't be stupid. You're lucky I'm letting you go at all".  
  
Falling back into silence Peter knows Neal won't last another 5 minutes. If he is honest with himself he is surprised Neal has lasted the 40 minutes that he's been awake. Silence and boredom is not something that Neal has ever done well with.  
  
True enough, not even 5 minutes later Neal turns around and looks at him. Opening and closing his mouth a couple of times Peter can tell that Neal is debating on what to say. Knowing just to keep quiet and that anything he does say will most likely have a reverse effect on the situation. Peter tries to remember not too crowd Neal and to also keep an eye on the road. It wouldn't do them any favours to crash.  
  
"You once said there was a big gaping hole before my 18th birthday". Peter looked over at Neal trying to work out where this is going. Not wanting to say much more he just hummed in agreement.  
  
"I've not told anyone about my childhood. I mean Moz knows bits and pieces. You know, the basics. Even then I didn't really tell him he found out most of it on his own." That surprised Peter, that means Kate didn't know, not sure where this is possibly going Peter again decides to remain quiet. Strangely, he also feels a sense of relief reasoning that if this was before Neals 18th birthday it isn't likely to do with a previous crime like all the scenarios running though his head earlier on were involving.  
  
Neal must have been reading his face but it seemed like he had been reading Peters mind. "You thought going to Lima was to do with my criminal past. No, well not really. Not in the way you think it does." They go back into silence, more comfortable than the previous 40 minutes. Peter trying to think through what Neal is trying to tell him and Neal gathering his thoughts trying to think of what to say next. _Trying _to think how much he wants to tell Peter.__  
  
They could have sat in silence for an hour or days, both just in their own worlds. In reality, it was only a couple of minutes later when Neal next speaks. "Peter. My family are in Ohio. We are going to see my family."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again Kudos and comments appreciated x


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Longest chapter I have done yet. Really beginning to have a respect for the writers who can publish chapters that are 1000s of word long every couple of weeks. 
> 
> Hope you enjoy this chapter. It's meant to give a bit of Neals' history but hopefully not too much. 
> 
> As always if you notice any mistakes let me know and thank you to Hazel_nut for Beta'ing.

Peter had already guessed that it was going to be about Neal’s family when he started talking about the gaping hole before his 18ths birthday but to actually hear Neal say it was something else. Hoping he kept the surprise off his face and trying to keep his tone as neutral as possible Peter goes with the simple question. “You grew up in Ohio?”. Hoping to keep Neal talking but trying to make sure he doesn’t push too much. If he pushed too hard Neal would just clam up and they would be back to square one.

Turning back to the front of the car Neal looks forward and shakes his head. “No, I grew up in St Louis. Remember I told you about my dad, about him being a dirty cop? It started all this. He was arrested when I was two and half. We were put into Witness Protection and moved to St Louis. It destroyed my mom finding out what my dad had done. There was Ellen who moved into Witsec with us. If it wasn’t for her I would most likely be dead, my mom left me to raise myself. Three years old and she near enough abandoned me.”

Peter wanted to comfort Neal, to reach out him and touch him on the shoulder. Neal has never seemed like such a lost child before now. Not normally one for comforting people Peter was surprised to have such an urge. Normally emotions were a completely foreign thing to him. Instead Peter went for short and sweet “I’m sorry you had to go through that Neal” Thinking it’s best not to speak too much and disturb Neal’s sudden urge to be open about his childhood he left it at that waiting for Neal to continue. From what Neal had already said it brought into perspective how little he actually knew about the con. Yes, when it came to the alleged crimes Neal has committed Peter is considered and expert, but when it comes to the actual details. The personal life. Everything that counts. He knows next to nothing. Hopefully this trip will fix that. Peter was brought out of his thoughts when Neal continued to tell his childhood in a monotonous voice, as if simply reading the facts of a case file.

“It wasn’t that bad looking back, I had Ellen. She was great. When I was about 9, nearly 10 I think, Mom met someone. No idea how she did since she barely left the house. It was like she was a different person. Not many people recognised her. For a couple of months it was great to see her so happy. She still didn’t spend time with me, I wasn’t really a factor but I didn’t care. Her happiness was infectious.” Neal let out a small chuckle, it was void of any joy. Peter thought it was the sort of laugh you made when it was the only thing you can do. That or cry.

“I fooled myself into thinking it was great. I would finally get the life I always wanted. A happy mom, a caring Dad just a few more months is all it would take and my mom would finally notice me. _Finally_ notice she had a child.”

They slipped into another silence. Not comfortable but not awkward, stuck in thoughts about their past. Peters upbringing wasn’t all sunshine and roses, whose childhood is. But when hearing Neal speak about his life in such a detached way it let Peter realise how lucky he was to have two loving parents, and a little sister. He loved them and wouldn’t change his childhood even if he could. It made him who he was today. They stayed in silence for about another 50 miles with them just passed through Mansfield Peter knew they were near the end of their journey. Neal had been staring out the side window for the majority of this time but continued eventually continued to speak as if no time had passed since he last spoke.

“It didn’t happen of course. She was too caught up in her own world. It shouldn’t have been that big a shock. And I don’t think it truly bothered me at the time as I never fully understood what I was missing. As Hunter Thomson said ‘You can’t miss what you never had’. I was just a naive and innocent child” It still amazed Peter how much Neal knew. How much was stored in that brain of his. Always quoting something, seeming too wise for his age. He had always assumed it had been from Neal’s criminal career, years on the run but from what Neal had said so far it seemed like Neal had always been wise. Always needed to be, it was a matter of survival.

“They were together for close to a year when mom fell pregnant. I was happy and mom and William were ecstatic. Making their dream life. A happy couple with a child together. Their first child. That’s what mom would say. She wasn’t wrong of course it was her first child with William. She just chose to make it seem like it was her very first child. I guess that’s where I learnt the art of deception. You can tell the truth and still make people believe something else. It’s all about the wording. Actually looking back I think I learnt a lot of my conning skills either from my mom or because of her.”

Peter couldn’t help but think how sad it was that Neals’ mom went around speaking to people as if he didn’t exist. The summary Neal said earlier about his mom near enough abandoning him was correct except she didn’t near enough abandon him. She did. Yes, they lived in the same building, but she wasn’t there for him emotionally, there to support him and by the sounds of it she wasn’t even the one feeding him. Peter thought that was almost worse than physical abuse, to give a child hope by being there but to then take it away by doing nothing for him. It seems Neal turned out a lot better than those in situations similar to him.

They were now nearly half an hour away from Lima, and Peter could tell Neal was getting nervous. Squirming in his seat and moving his hand to the radio going to change the station and then stopping half way there to realise what he was about to do. Knowing that there wasn’t much longer to get answers out of Neal and also being aware that there might not be an opportunity like this again Peter was trying to decide what else to ask. Not wanting to get to personal but still having a great many questions Peter decides to ask the first one that brings its way forward. “When was the last time you saw your family?”.

Not expecting a question from Peter Neal whips his head to face him with a calculating look in his eye. As if he is trying to work out any other motivation and if the answer would incriminate him. Or maybe it was a look of surprise on Neals’ face, as if he was only now just realising that he told Peter all that he had. Or maybe it was both of those things. Peter couldn’t work out what was going through Neals’ mind right now and it was frustrating. “A week before my 17th Birthday.” If Peter was wanting an explanation he realised he wasn’t going to get one. Neal had turned back to face the front of the car when his phone rang.

From the way Neal was speaking Peter guessed it was Moz that he was on the phone to. The answers were clipped and no names were exchanged in typical Moz paranoia. When the conversation was finished Neal hung up and changed the radio to a Jazz playing station.  “We are going to St Rita’s”, Neal said it with such finality that Peter knew there was no more conversation to be had regarding Neals’ past. That suited Peter, even though he had many more questions he wanted to ask it gave Peter a chance to sort through what Neal has told him and to look into it in more detail.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and Kudos very much appreciated x


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the more I write this the moreI realise is is not going to be as dramatic as originally planned. Ok, little to no drama is going to happen. Mainly because I am too scared too write it and also because there are plenty of dramatic fanfic out there. I might change my mind later on when writing this, who knows. I hope people still want to read it though. 
> 
> I have no idea how hospitals in america work, anything medical over the course of the fanfic is done either by research, watching tv, or asking my mum so just bare with me for that. I am trying to make it as realistic as possible when it comes to facts about location, medicine and all that jazz. 
> 
> As always if you notice any mistakes just let me know. Thanks again to Hazel_Nut for being Beta.

 

To say that Neal was nervous would be an understatement. For the past 24 hours he had only really been worried about Blaine, even when speaking to Peter about his childhood he was thinking about Blaine in hospital. That’s probably why he ended up telling Peter as much as he did. It felt strange having someone else know that much about him. Moz knows he has a brother and that’s about it. There is a chance Moz has done his own research on it but if he has he hasn’t spoken to Neal about what he found. It’s an unspoken agreement between them. Don’t speak about each other’s past, they don’t need to know why each other fell into the life that they did. They just need to know that, when the time comes, they can count on each other. It’s probably why their friendship has lasted as strongly as it has for so long. After all you can’t con a con man.

But as the car journey was coming to an end Neal was getting more and more nervous. He hadn’t thought about the fact that the last time he saw his family he wasn’t even 17 years old. Mozs’ phone call has calmed his worry about Blaine down. He was due to have surgery in the next couple of hours, Moz had said they needed to wait for the swelling to go down before they could fully assess that damage done to Blaines face. Neal was grateful, if they were able to wait this long whatever has happened to Blaine isn’t likely to be life threatening. That said, Neal felt he would visibly have to see that his little brother was ok before he could truly relax. He’s not sure how Moz gets all his information, yes they have contacts all over the world, but realistically it is scary how easily Moz is able to find out things. Especially about a teenage boy in a small town in Ohio.

Peter had barely had a chance to park the car before Neal jumped out and ran into the hospital. It was half past 5 and with Blaine going into surgery soon it meant Neal wouldn’t get long to see him before the operation. The closer he got to Lima the more Neal realised how much he missed his baby brother, knowing they would be in the same building and not see each other would be hell. He desperately wanted to see Blaine before they took him in for the operation. Yes, he was anxious about seeing Blaine, especially after all this time but the more time he had to think about it the more scenarios he would run through his head about how Blaine would react. Each scenario was worse than the one before. Better just to get in there and get the awkward reunions over with. At least that was the plan, but Neal should have known it wouldn’t be as easy as that. After all, when had his plans ever truly gone as they were meant to. Even his heists which took weeks of planning rarely went exactly how they had wanted them to.

While Neal was waiting for the receptionist to find where in the hospital Blaine was (really how hard can it be, just type in his name and it should tell you) Peter had parked the car and caught up with Neal. “Ah yes, Blaine Anderson.” Neal moved from one foot to the other screaming nervous energy and impatience. “He’s in the surgical ward in the East wing room 27.” Neal didn’t listen to the directions the woman gave. Instead he ran off in the direction of the East Wing knowing Peter would not be far behind. The corridors seemed never ending. Turning right, then left then right again before they finally reached the surgical department in the East Wing. Really you would think they would make the department closer and easier to get to.

As Neal counted the numbers until they neared the room Blaine was in. He slowed, all the fears that he had been trying to keep down and buried for the last 24 hours rose to the surface and he froze. In normal circumstanced Neal would probably have been embarrassed that he froze in front of Peter, normally priding himself on being confident, or at least acting it, in every situation. To freeze in Neals profession could mean death. Neal felt his chest constricting, struggling to breath, his vision also started to blur. All these thoughts were racing through his mind at a hundred miles per hour. What if Blaine doesn’t recognise him? Worse, what if Baine doesn’t remember him? He had been only 5 years old when Neal left? Or maybe he does remember him but hates him for leaving? Feeling Peters hand on his chest he slowly starts to calm his breathing and realises that Peter has been speaking. “That’s it Neal, just breathe. In, one, two, three. Out, one, two, three.” Feeling his heart rate return to a more normal and healthy pace Neal began to feel his face heat up with the embarrassment about what had just happened “Thanks, don’t know what came over me”

Seeing that Peter did not believe him and wanted to ask more questions Neal took one final deep breath to calm himself down. Not wanting to answer any more questions Neal stood up tall and bringing his shoulders back he started walking to room 27. Realising that he was worrying over nothing and even if Blaine did hate him all he would have to do is make sure he is ok and then leave for New York and never see Blaine again. Room 23….. room 25 and there it is room 27.

The door was open and Neal could see Blaine sitting up on the bed talking to another boy around the same age who was sitting on the chair next to the bed. It had been over 10 years since he had last seen Blaine but seeing his little brother beaten up and in a hospital, Neal found himself trying to hold down another surge of emotions. Rage, for whoever did this to Blaine and the strong urge to take Blaine away from this world and keep him safe.

Before he was even aware of doing it Neal found himself striding into the room, straight toward his brother.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and Kudos very very much appreciated. (but seriously even getting hits make me happy). 
> 
> If anyone has any ideas of where they think the plot should go just comment. I am always 100% open for suggestions, i only really have the next couple of chapters planned out in my head properly. x


End file.
